Garden City teen’s rape charges dropped

Garden City  A southwest Kansas prosecutor has dropped charges against a 16-year-old boy accused of kidnapping and raping two Garden City girls.

Finney County Attorney John Wheeler says new evidence surfaced Wednesday night that caused police to restart the investigation. Wheeler wouldn’t comment on the evidence, but a police spokesman says officers are no longer seeking suspects in the case.

The 16-year-old Garden City boy was arrested Aug. 11 and charged with rape, kidnapping and other offenses involving two girls, ages 13 and 15.

The girls told police Aug. 8 that they had been walking in Garden City about 2 a.m. when five Hispanic men forced them into a vehicle. The girls said they were driven to a field, sexually assaulted and dropped off back in the city.